Thailand plans to extend 45 day visa free stays until year end | Thailand News Today
Thailand plans to extend 45 day visa free stays until year end
The Tourism Authority of Thailand will propose extending the 45 day visa exemption on arrival policy until the end of the year to boost tourism recovery.
In September last year, Thailand’s Cabinet approved the temporary extension of visa on arrival and visa exemption on arrival for the High Season.
Between October 1, 2022 – March 31, 2023, foreign tourists arriving in Thailand are eligible to stay in the kingdom as follows depending on their passport country…
- Visa on Arrival stays will be extended from 15 days to 30 days. Passport holders from 19 countries are eligible for Visa on Arrival.
- Visa Exemption stays for passport holders from 64 countries that have bilateral agreements with Thailand will be extended from 30 days to 45 days.
Thailand surpassed its target of 10 million tourists in 2022, welcoming 11.5 million in total, which the TAT largely attributes to Thailand’s extended visa on arrival/visa exemption policy.
Extended stays have been vital to generating tourism revenue, spurring Thailand’s tourism industry to be among the fastest to recover in post-pandemic Southeast Asia.
For this reason, the TAT has proposed extending the visa on arrival/visa exemption on arrival policy to help reach their target of 25 million foreign arrivals in Thailand in 2023.
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Taxi mafias allegedly assault Pattaya boat operators
A group of taxi mafias allegedly assaulted two Pattaya boat operators on Sunday.
The boat operators, 39 year old Kriengsak Tubtimtong and 40 year old Somchai Thongdee, said the incident happened in the นาเกลือ sub-district of Chon Buri’s Bang Lamung district.
Kriengsak, told Pattaya Police that he and Somchai had planned to peacefully resolve a territorial conflict between them and the group of taxi drivers. But when Kriengsak and Somchai arrived to settle the dispute, over 30 people showed up to meet them, some carrying guns. The operators referred to the crowd as a group of “taxi mafias.”
Kriengsak said the group threatened to shoot him and Somchai, and beat them up. The two boat operators suffered non-life-threatening injuries, and had three stitches.
As is the case with many of Pattaya’s crimes, police said the incident had damaged Pattaya’s reputation.
Pattaya Police said they would have investigating officers survey the incident scene to look for suspects.
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Oil tanker explosion in Thailand kills 1, 4 missing
At 9.30 am, a large oil tanker docked in Samut Songkhram province, southwest of Bangkok, exploded and caught fire. At present, one person has been confirmed dead and four people are still missing.
Firefighters from Mueang Samut Songkram Fire Station have got the fire under control at the shipyard แหลมใหญ่ subdistrict on the Mae Klong River.
As the tanker was carrying a large quantity of oil, firefighters had to use foam as well as water to quell the flames.
Mueang Samut Songkram Fire Station is currently going live on Facebook from the scene, where smoke still billows from the tanker as of noon.
Deputy Director-General of the Marine Department said the cause of the explosion is unknown at present. The blast was heard as far as 10 kilometres away, reports say.
The Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre reported that the explosion shattered the glass windows of nearby houses resulting in two injuries.
Photos reveal that the explosion caused significant damage to one property nearby.
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